Lake Forest, St. Thomas More and defending Henlopen South Champs Polytech square off in opening Tri-Meet of the Track & Field season

Friday

Mar 22, 2013 at 3:02 AMMar 22, 2013 at 3:03 AM

Mike Santa Barbara

Defending Henlopen South Champions Polytech will open up the Track & Field season on Friday afternoon against division foe Lake Forest and the Ravens from St. Thomas More.

All three boys and girls squads come into the season’s opening meet with something to prove.

Polytech comes in as the defending Henlopen South Division Champions, while a youthful Lake Forest team aims to prove they’ve matured and are ready to challenge the Panthers within the division.

For the Ravens, it’s an early measuring stick for some of their State Championship hopefuls.

While division, conference or state championships can’t be won in the season’s opening week, the momentum to get there can surely begin.

The challenge begins for the Panthers, who will no doubt have each and every competitor gunning for them since they’re the top dog. The Spartans are aware of this, and ready to show the growth they’ve made from last season.

“We know Polytech are the defending boys and girls Southern Division Champions,” said Lake Forest Head Coach Fred Johnson. “And they are going to be ready to defend their title.”

Johnson believes his team will be highly competitive especially within the division this season. Though, he realizes both Polytech and St. Thomas More will be bringing their best from the jump on Friday.

“We are expecting a close meet for both teams,” said Johnson. “Our athletes are excited and looking forward to the competition.”

For the Panthers, we’ll see who is ready to fill the shoes of the likes of Deborah Spruance, Alberto Burgos-Martinez, Justin Braddy, Jer’a Harmon, and David Okele.

Timothy Howell, Vanessa Hatton, Ashleigh Veney, Rachel Watson, and Gabriel Green are just a handful of names that look to standout for the Panthers on Friday.

The Spartans will be led on the boys side by Johnny Crenshaw, Joseph Crenshaw, and Juhmani Tilghman. While Martina Proctor, Erin Wix, and Tyesha Purnell look to shine for the girls.

While undermanned, the Ravens boast a group of impressive athletes on both the girls and boys teams.

Kevin McLane, Riley Reif, and brothers David and Jon Titus make up the boys standouts looking to open some eyes.

Marianthi Bousses, Molly McElligott, and Candice Reif look to show the girls team has improved.